Nocht
by Amber E Rippingale
Summary: Alucard wakes from decades of sleep in time to battle the greatest threat beleaguered humanity has ever faced. With a Belmont at his side and allies among the Fae, will it be enough to stem the tide of blood? Rated M for language and violence.
1. Chapter One: A Tale Told By An Idiot

An explosion rocked the castle. The sleeping man's eyes creeped open as if they were made of stone. How long had it been? The castle shook again.

"Fuck," he groaned aloud, placing long, delicate fingers on the ancient carved wood above him, and pushing. The rusted brass hinges squealed in protest but the coffin lid opened. The man sat up, yawning, and revealing fanged eyeteeth. He climbed out of the ornately carved coffin, his hands displacing a full inch of dust as he did. Another explosion made the foundations of his father's castle tremble beneath him.

"What the hell is going on?" He spoke to the silent halls. He moved through corridors he'd known for hundreds of years. He was shirtless and a large golden ring hung from a light chain around his neck. He was so pale, his skin was like porcelain. He had long blond hair and eyes of pale gold. He made it to a window, wiped away a circle of grime and looked out. Three buildings lay in rubble around the castle. As he watched, a fourth building shuddered and collapsed in on itself, falling to the ground in a massive cloud of dust.

"How long have I slept?" he wondered aloud, gazing out at a landscape he did not recognize. The last thing he remembered… Hitler. Hitler was in power. He turned away from the window, feeling his age. His muscles were stiff and his joints ached. His skin was as thick and brittle as the ancient parchment in the books upstairs. And he was so very hungry.

Victoria Belmont carefully closed the tattered book she was reading and placed it in the messenger bag slung over her shoulder. Hitching the heavy bag higher up on her shoulder and taking her pen light out of her mouth, she shined the light over the expanse of rubble. A group of four historic buildings have been demolished today after they had suffered extensive damage in a recent hurricane. This city of broken concrete and Twisted Metal that went out as far as she could see was all that was left.

"You can't see much even with the flashlight," her companion whispered.

"I'm gonna try the spectacles," she whispered back.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" the whisper spoke again.

"Yes, and why are you whispering?" Torie asked, her voice returning to its normal volume.

"oh, I don't know. Maybe it's because you're about to wake a fucking vampire!"

"Dracula hasn't been seen in like six-hundred years."

"Maybe you should let sleeping Dracs lie."

Torie gave her friend a hard look before polishing the crystal lenses and placing the enchanted spectacles on her face.

"You look ridiculous," her friend said, still hidden.

"Will you come out of there?" Torie asked in exasperation.

The empty space next to her began to shimmer. The darkness fell away. Ailis Boru dropped her cloak of shadow and glared at her friend with a look of supreme annoyance.

"Fine!" she huffed dramatically, "but if I get my throat torn out by a blood-mad bat-boy, I'm never speaking to you again."

"What if it's a blood-mad bat-girl?" Torie asked raising an eyebrow with a naughty grin on her face. The Irish Fae bared a row of neat black fangs. Those uninitiated to the Fae might see this as a threat, but Torie knew her friend was playing along. Torie adjusted the spectacles by carefully twisting the lens to bring the unseen world into focus. She spoke as she fiddled with the spectacles.

"If my research is correct, the castle appeared here sometime in the 1920s. Witness reports indicate that it disappeared again almost immediately. The castle is the most advanced mystical engine ever devised. Even after all this time there should still be residual…" As she explained herself to her friend, she scanned the area. She couldn't help but feel a swell of pride in her chest as she stared through the crystal lenses. The spectacles worked! As she scanned the area she saw ghosts floating down the streets they must have walked in life. She saw goblins and pixies: harmless pranksters normally invisible to humans. A gargantuan black shape like a dog moved noiselessly, prowling the nearby cemetery, a Grim guarding the dead. She made mental notes of all she saw. She turned her body to scan another section of street and that's when she saw it. She stopped speaking and stood transfixed.

Ailis looked back at her friend as soon as she stopped speaking.

"Residual…. What? Torie? You ok, babe?". She glided over to Torie, who stood as still as a statue, her mouth agape and a single tear trailing down her cheek. Ailis waved a hand in front of her face. She repeated.

"Residual what? Torie, was it here?"

"Is here." Torie spoke, finally. Her voice was hushed with awe and something like terror.

"Is here?" Ailis asked, in confusion.

"Look," Torie said, taking the enchanted spectacles off, blinking hard and holding them out to her friend. Ailis held them up to her eyes. After a second, forehand drop to her side and she stared at her friend. She raised the spectacles again.

"Is it?" She started to ask.

"It's somebody's." Torie answered. "Look at the size of it." Torie replaced the spectacles primly on her nose and began taking notes in a brown leather journal.

"You should make another pair, so then we wouldn't have to share," Ailis said, almost shyly, her former exuberance gone. Torie sighed.

"You don't need them, Darling."

"Yes, I do. I…"

"You're a Fae. You don't need human magic to see the unseen.". Torie took off the glasses and waved them dismissively.

"These? The spell on these is nothing but a parlor trick, compared to what can summon. I don't know why you're so reticent."

Ailis hissed and cloaked herself in shadows again and Torie sighed.

"Babe, c'mon. That's real mature."

"There's a vampire nearby. I don't know how close. We need to go. We need to go now." Ailis' voice was once again disembodied and high and tight with fear. Torie quickly stuffed the spectacles in her pocket and her notebook in her messenger bag.

"OK," she said, "take off. But we'll continue this discussion later," she added, patting the pocket of her trench coat that contained the spectacles.

"But what about you? I can't leave you alone." Torie turned away from the castle and walked quickly up the street.

"Go, Ailis. I'm not the one who's family is in a centuries old feud with the Sun Court. I'm just an average, unattractive human. It won't want me. As she spoke, she put more distance between her and the ancient castle. She was disappointed. She hadn't sensed the vampire at all.

Though her friend was silent and invisible, she could feel that Ailis was still by her side.

"Go on, Baby. I'll be fine." Torie reached out, felt Ailis grasp her hand and then she felt cold. She always felt cold when Ailis left her presence. Torie adjusted her bag and wrapped her coat more tightly around her portly frame. As she passed the cemetery, the unseen Grim stopped to sniff her. The creatures breath ruffled her hair. She pulled her hood up and shivered.

From the shadows, the tall blonde man with golden eyes materialized in a waft of black smoke. This was intriguing. This fat naive mortal had somehow managed to find his father's castle, even with all the spells and wards he put in place to keep it hidden. She had found it. And the other was obviously Fae; he could smell the magic on her. He had planned to move the castle but maybe... maybe it would be worth it to stick around awhile.

The tall stately manor rose high above the surrounding land of rolling hills and forest groves. A mile-long, tree-lined drive wound its way through pristine gardens. A fountain in the shape of angels and cherubs gushed in the center of the expansive front lawn. It was verdant and lush. Idyllic. And Carmilla hated it. She mourned the changing of the times. The covenant between humanity and the Night Witch vampires prevented her from raging about the countryside as in days of olde. It was safer for all involved but still, she hated it.

"Fuck the fucking Sun Court." She snarled to herself, sipping a champagne glass of blood. The situation could not be allowed to continue. The doors opened and a liveried servant entered.

"Madam Carmilla," the old butler intoned.

"Chandrah has arrived. She awaits you in the library."

Carmilla nodded and wordlessly dismissed her butler. She drained the glass, licking her lips, and setting the glass down on the table. She smiled.

"It's time to end this ridiculous covenant." She spat out the word.

"It's time to end them all."


	2. Chapter 2 - Sound and Fury

**Good Day All!**

 **I would like to preface this chapter by giving just a small bit of background. I am not a "fan" of Castlevania. I enjoyed the series on Netflix, and I enjoyed the Lords of Shadow videos games (yes, I know they aren't canon). This is not intended to "fit" into the canon. It's an AU, populated with a few regulars but mostly OCs. I hope you enjoy it, and please feel free to leave a review. I always welcome suggestions and constructive criticism.**

 **Now, on with the story!**

As Torie moved through the darkened streets, the vampire trailed far behind her. He didn't need to follow her closely. To his enhanced senses, her scent wasn't hard to pick out from amid the myriad scents currently bombarding his nose. His pace was leisurely; he was fascinated with the city. It had changed so much since the last time he walked its streets. There were so many lights everywhere, and sounds he'd never heard before. The air was heavy with a restless energy, a tension as palpable as blood on his tongue. All his instincts told him that something was coming; a change as swift and terrible as a storm in the mountains. Even the humans, with their dull and distracted senses could feel the approach. It was a silent, nameless dread they had no hope of understanding.

A scream rent the air, dragging his wandering mind back to the here-and-now. The vampire winced at the grating tone and took a deep breath through his nose. He detected her scent, now sharper with fear and mingled with blood. He put on a burst of speed, making up the distance in a few short seconds. He turned into the alley where Torie stood cornered by three creatures. They looked like massive, mutated housecats. They stood on two legs, about four feet high. A cold golden light poured out of gashes torn in their flesh. They hissed and spat, light dripping from their blackened fangs. Torie had dropped her bag, pulling a large weapon from its depths. She snapped her wrist and a long chain unfurled, tipped by a cross. The first of the creatures charged her.

"No," she shouted, snapping the steel whip, to keep the creatures at bay. "I don't want to hurt you," she said, lowering her voice. The creatures hissed again, spitting streams of yellow gold that pooled on the cement and reflected what little light there was. The vampire moved in to slay the creatures, but before he had taken a single step, the woman swung the chain in a practiced arc, wrapped it around the head and neck of one and pulled it in close. As soon as it was within range, she swung down with the sharp heavy handle of the weapon, and smashed the creature to the ground. It mewed softly, and lay still, barely breathing. The other two screamed in rage and charged her at once from different directions. She couldn't avoid them both. She caught one with the tail of the whip, wrapping it around its legs and pulling it from its feet. It hit the ground hard, and couldn't free itself from the chain. The other sank its claws and fangs into Torie's arm. She screamed in pain and the scent of blood made him nauseous. He remembered briefly that he hadn't eaten in decades, but put the thought out of his head.

Torie grabbed the creature's head with her free hand and pried its jaws open. She held the creature back against brick wall of the alley and drew the sharp point of the weapon across its throat. In place of blood, more golden light pooled out around the wound and began pouring down the front of the corpse. Torie dropped the corpse and turned around. The final creature had extricated itself from the chains and came at her again. She had no time to respond. She swung the chain hard and the vampire heard her whisper two words.

"Tempus Tardo," The vampire felt the burn of magic in the air. He watched as the woman came in his direction and moved to duck into the shadows. He found he couldn't move, not very quickly. All of his vampire speed gained him nothing in the face of the spell she cast. In the space of three heartbeats the spell ended. At the last second, he saw it coming and ducked with all the speed his vampiric blood allowed. The ancient holy steel flail in the shape of a cross took a large chunk out of the brickwork above his head. The last creature lay dead, in an explosion of golden light. He recognized the weapon in an instant.

The woman walked back to the first creature, wheezing painfully on the ground where she dropped it. She waved her hands over its body. It was the smallest of the creatures, the size of a small child. It mewed pathetically. The vampire could hear its broken bones moving under its skin as it breathed. He though she was about to put it out of its misery, when she lifted the creature and wrapped it carefully in her coat. It didn't resist, seeming to understand that she wasn't going to cause it further harm. She set it carefully on the ground out of the way and retrieved her bag. She wound up the now-wet chain and stuffed the weapon into the depths of the bag.

A screech shattered the silence as another, much larger creature sprung from the shadows. Even the vampire hadn't sensed it's presence. This man-sized monster was different than the others. It's coat showed no drops of light. Blood dropped from its fangs. It charged Torie, bowling her over and knocking her weapon out of reach. The beast straddled her, trying to reach her throat. She held on tightly to its throat and shoulder, stopping its snapping, slobbering jaw a mere inch from her face. For all its height, the creature lacked bulk. She rolled them over, pinning the creature and punching it twice in the face. Torie, breathing hard, pushed herself to her feet and ran for her bag. The beast scrambled up and followed hot on her heels.

Torie grabbed the bag, sidestepping to avoid its claws, and looped the long strap of the bag around the beast's neck. They struggled. Torie's hands white at the knuckles and her arms trembled. A swift kick to the knee from behind and she drove it to the ground. Planting a large foot in the center of its back, she pulled up and back on the strap with all her strength. The vampire heard the cracking of bones before Victoria let go. When she was sure it was dead, she unwound the strap and dropped the bag. She fell back on her butt, panting hard, her hands and arms numb. The vampire watched her from the shadows. The whole fight had taken less than five minutes. He wouldn't have thought she was capable of such a defense. She stood, replacing everything that had fallen out of the bag during the struggle. She was still breathing hard and her heart raced, as much from exhaustion as adrenaline.

Torie stood in the center of the alley. The alley was wide and well-lit, in what she would consider to be the "good" part of town. She had heard reports; an uptick in strange sightings and occurrences, even a few alleged attacks. Those always seemed to turn out to be misunderstandings between humans and vampires. But this… she knelt down, looking more closely at the wounded one. New creatures. Victoria had studied her family's bestiary. Never had she seen these creatures recorded.

She retrieved her smartphone from the bottom of her bag.

"What are you?" she murmured as she snapped photos.

"Where do you come from? And why did you attack me? Was it random? Or did I attract you somehow?". She mused to herself as she rolled one of the creatures over to photograph it. She glanced at her watch. It was nearly ten minutes ago, that this started, and still no sirens.

"Must be a busy night," she said. Her head on a swivel, she began to collect samples of blood, fur, saliva, flesh and teeth from the corpses at her feet. She stowed these plastic vials in her bag. The last creature, she ignored. She had seen its kind before. It was a typical hell-beast, though somewhat larger than she had seen before. It looked like some unholy cross between a dog, a bat, and a child.

She finished collecting her samples and pulled a large oilskin sack from an outside pocket of her bag. She bundled one of the corpses into it and tied it closed. The liquid light that had pooled around the corpses had faded from a bright and glowing gold, to a dull iron gray. Torie looked down at herself. She was covered in the same dull gray.

"This had better wash out," she grumbled.

Swinging both bags up onto her shoulder, she carefully lifted the survivor and held it tight to her chest. She left the alley, moving quickly toward her home. Five blocks later, she climbed down the steps to her basements exterior door, having not heard or seen a police officer, the whole way him. She pushed the troubling thought out of her mind and locked the door. There was work to do.

The vampire stopped outside the plain two-story brownstone. There were protective wards surrounding it. They made his hair stand on end. It was warded against vampires. He crossed the street, taming his golden mane. If he wanted answers to his questions, he'd have to wait until she came out. He took a deep breath, picking up the remnants of her scent still clinging to the night air.

"I can wait," he said, turning away. "I've got your scent now, Belmont. I can wait."

Carmilla held the tiny glass vial between two long, perfectly-manicured nails. A thin, colorless liquid sloshed inside as she slowly tipped the vial back and forth between her fingers. She looked over the vial at the woman sitting across from her. She was a dryad from Louisiana and well-versed in potent magics. Her skills were not cheap. Carmilla had not decided yet if they were worth it.

"It doesn't look like much," she said setting the vial down between them.

"Truth is in this vial," Chandrah said leaning back in her chair and taking a sip of tea.

"You want to get rid of the Sun Court and break the Blood Pact, you need this. Only question is: will you pay the price."

Camilla's eyes narrowed slightly and she smiled. This was a dryad after her own twisted heart. She snapped her fingers. Her old butler step forward, a wine bottle on a tray. He bowed to Chandra, presenting the tray to her. She took the bottle and ran a delicate finger across the label. Smelling the cork, she smiled.

"An excellent vintage," she said approvingly.

"A case, as you requested," Carmilla said.

Chandra open the briefcase at her feet inside a small, ornate wooden box down on the table. Camilla opened it. Eleven tiny glass vials in one neat row packed in red velvet. One space was empty. Replacing the vial in the empty space and closing the lid Carmilla stood and held out her hand.

Chandrah and Carmilla shook hands to conclude their business. As Carmilla walked Chandrah to the door, Chandrah spoke again.

"You feed that to that light sprite you got locked up down there, you'll get your answers. you need more, you let me know.

"Thank you. Geoffrey, show Chandrah to the fountain." The butler nodded silently. Carmilla handed him the box.

"And take this to Jack. It should help him with his little project."


End file.
